


they knew better

by mazzledazzl3



Series: i'll be the man your dad hoped that i'd be [9]
Category: Bohemian Rhapsody (Movie 2018) Actor RPF
Genre: But they try, Family Feels, Family Fluff, Future, M/M, Making Up, Teenagers, argument, rami and joe aren't experienced in raising teens, title: p!nk - who knew
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-22
Updated: 2019-07-22
Packaged: 2020-07-10 15:01:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,115
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19907644
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mazzledazzl3/pseuds/mazzledazzl3
Summary: joe and rami aren't experienced in raising teens. they still try to help evelyn when she's obviously upset on a car ride home from her friend's house.





	they knew better

**Author's Note:**

> an anon on tumblr requested the prompt, “why do you two always have to kiss in front of my friends?” from this dialogue prompt list: https://mazzledazzl3.tumblr.com/post/184988728540/parenthood-dialogue . feel free to leave a prompt in my inbox! my tumblr is mazzledazzl3.
> 
> anyway, this skips quite a ways into the future. evelyn is a teenager, and it (slight spoiler alert for those who haven't been on my tumblr) it mentions her siblings! it was written based on my experiences and reactions to similar situations. it may be different for everyone! feel free to leave a comment, and enjoy <3

Evelyn's arms were crossed tightly across her chest as she looked down. There seemed to be a permanent scowl on her face. She occasionally shot glares at her dads in front of her, but not long enough for them to notice. They were on their way home from her best friend's, or crush's, house. 

Rami glanced over at Joe, then back at Evelyn. He knew something was wrong, but he didn't know what to say. He'd never been the parent of a teenage girl before. _Please say something..._ He thought as he glanced at Joe again.

Silence remained in the car. The atmosphere was tense and uncomfortable. Joe tried to focus on the road in front of him. He knew something was wrong, too. He didn't want to say something that would make it worse, though. He was hoping Rami would be the first one to speak.

Rami sighed softly. _Seems like I'll have to do it._ “Evie?”

“What?” Evelyn snapped, making Rami flinch. She didn't care if she hurt her parents at this point or not. She still couldn't believe what they had done. While she was with the person she had had a crush on for weeks. It was betrayal at its finest.

“Evelyn, what's wrong?” Rami asked in the gentlest voice he could muster. He glanced back at Evelyn. Seeing her so upset broke his heart. _What did I do? Did her friend do something? Or Joe?_

“You know what you did.”

“You need to be more specific than that.”

Evelyn rolled her eyes. Joe caught a glimpse of it in the rear view mirror. Everything inside him was screaming for him to scold Evelyn for it, to tell her it was very disrespectful for her to roll her eyes at her father, but he didn't want to make the situation worse. He knew they were lucky to have her talking about her problems.

“Evelyn, pl-”

“Daddy, just drop it.”

“But I want to hel-”

“Can we just drop it? Please?” Evelyn finally looked up at Rami with pleading eyes. Her arms remained crossed, and she let her hair fall in front of one of her eyes. She didn't want to look at either of her parents directly right now. 

Rami was pleased to finally see Evelyn looking up. _I still don't know what's wrong. God, does Joe not see me struggling here?_ He reached over and gently nudged Joe. Joe looked over at him. Rami motioned back towards Evelyn. 'Say something,' he mouthed. Joe felt like he was on shaky ground.

“Evelyn, I know you don't want to talk,” Joe paused and took a deep breath in attempt to calm his nerves. He looked at Evelyn in the rearview mirror. She continued to look down, but her scowl had softened. She had an unamused, almost bored expression on her face. He knew it was better than the scowl he saw earlier. “Daddy and I just want to help. We don't like to see you upset.”

Evelyn pondered Joe's words. Talking to her parents had helped in the past, but she usually didn't talk about serious stuff with Joe. She saved the important, possibly life-altering topics for Rami. She knew she could trust him when it came to good advice. She also saw Joe as the fun, lax parent that wouldn't give the best advice when it came down to those things. She knew she was stuck in the car, though, until they got home. She didn't want to be uncomfortable for ten more minutes. 

She uncrossed her arms and reminded herself to breathe. “I just don't understand why you and Dad have to kiss in front of my friends. Seriously, why?” A voice in the back of her head told her it was silly to be so offended by the action, but her embarrassment was much stronger. It made her wonder if either of her parents had ever been teenagers before.

Both Rami and Joe felt a flood of relief wash over them after she spoke. It let Rami know her friend didn't do anything wrong, and he could trust them. Joe was happy to feel less tension.

“Why do you feel this way?” Rami asked. “It's completely okay, Evelyn, I'm just curious. You don't have to answer, if you don't want to.” _Pick your words carefully, Rami, you don't want to hurt her._

“It's weird seeing you guys kiss... You're old. It's just strange,” Evelyn explained.

Joe bit back a chuckle. He never considered Rami or himself old, since they still felt rather young. “We're not _that_ old.”

“You're adults, and that's enough.”

Rami shook his head. _So this is the kind of thing Mom was telling me about?_ “You'll be an adult one day, too, Evelyn. If you have kids, they'll tell you the same thing you're telling us right now.”

Evelyn quickly shook her head, “Nope.”

“It'll happen, just you wait!” Joe said with a smile. He received another quick head shake from Evelyn, which made him chuckle. Silence fell over the three as they continued towards home. It was comfortable this time, unlike before.

Evelyn looked out the window. She couldn't get her friend off of her mind. She hoped they would still talk to her after that night. She was happy the tension in the car was gone. She wasn't ready to arrive home to hear teasing from both of her brothers, though.

When the trio arrived home, Joe lead the way to the front door. They didn't have to worry about the paparazzi much anymore, since they had lost some interest in the family once they announced they weren't having any more kids. There were still fake articles about a possible divorce, cheating, especially when Rami or Joe were spotted alone with someone besides the other, and a plethora of other things. As long as the articles weren't about any of their three kids, Rami and Joe paid them no mind.

Rami stopped Evelyn right before they went inside. He smiled at her softly. “Just remember, Evie, Dad and I aren't doing it to embarrass you. It's how I tell him I love him, without saying it out loud, and vice-versa,” he explained. “We love you, so much. We loved you from the moment we found out about you. Please don't ever forget that.”

Evelyn smiled back at him. She rarely admitted it out loud, but she knew her parents loved her, and she loved them. They were her best friends and her parents at the same time. “I love you and Dad, too.”

The two then entered the house behind Joe. Evelyn immediately headed off to her room. She had people to talk to.


End file.
